Why do websites crash
You know the feeling. You are watching a site or attempting to prove to your pals the funny video that you just saw, and then it simply freezes. The scourge of the internet is that one day the website is up and running and the next moment, the site cannot be reached.
Ugh! In my own experience as an Entrepreneur, there’s nothing as irritating as customers informing you that your website is not functional. What’s going on here?
It can happen to the most successful websites – there are moments when the site crashes and this is not such a rare occurrence. Let’s break down some reasons why websites take surprise nose-dives into offline land:
Also Read: How to Fix the 503 Error in WordPress
Let’s break down some reasons why websites take surprise nose-dives into offline land:
1. Traffic Spikes
Who cannot wish to have more people visiting their site?
However, large traffic spikes can lead to crashes in case your web host does not allocate enough bandwidth or server space. If by some chance a site gets on a popular social media feed or goes viral, the influx of visitors can just be more than the server can manage.
2. Software Bugs and Glitches
This is typically due to coding glitches on-site software, plugins or themes that cause many crashes. A slight error such as an accidental loop, bug, or a broken link will halt everything to a standstill. This is why constant updates and vulnerability tests are important for maintaining the health of sites.
3. Human Error
Come on, let’s be real – nobody is perfect and everyone is capable of making mistakes! Web developers or site owners may mistakenly delete files, type the wrong code or modify necessary settings that cause the problem. Fortunately, life has provided us with regular backups and easy enablement of restoration options to overcome our ingenious capability of making mistakes.
4. Cyber Attacks
Unfortunately, malicious hackers are capable of attacking websites and launching attacks that are aimed at crashing the server and therefore disrupting the website. Some examples include the use of the sites for traffic such as DDoS attacks where the site is overwhelmed with junk traffic and the penetration of other vulnerabilities in the site’s software. It is crucial to update the security measures and always have contingency plans.
5. Server and Hosting Issues
Any issue with web servers, DNS configurations, and hosting environments could lead to outages. Web hosting businesses usually employ multiple tiers of backup to ensure that the websites hosted with them are up most of the time. But hardware failures, power interruptions, network outages and other data centre problems can bring sites down regardless. Let me tell you this, selecting a reliable web host is beyond important!
Forget all about that, let us continue to keep your site running smoothly!
Website crashes are not always a sign of the apocalypse. Thus, with proper planning, good hosting, and regular maintenance, developers can avoid most of these outages and fix them if they occur. Going through your website and realizing that it looks unpolished and unprofessional, you definitely need help. Contact us – we can determine what needs fixing and get your site back to where it should be – online.
